Puzzle Link

Puzzle Link is a collection of logic minigames from studio SETA, known during the nineties for its puzzle titles on both handhelds and arcade cabinets around the world. On the Game Boy Color it offers a set of distinct puzzle modes - from shape assembly through colour matching to puzzles built around gravity and falling blocks - so the player can pick the style that suits them best and that they're most skilled at, instead of being tied to a single game principle for the entire playthrough.

Switching between the individual game modes gives the game more variety compared to classic one-dimensional puzzle titles of the time, and it plays well in shorter bursts thanks to that as well, without the need to learn just one system of rules. The graphical presentation is simple and functional, with an emphasis on a clear playing field, which is key on the GBC's small screen for quickly reading the situation under time pressure. The controls stay intuitive across all modes, so switching between them doesn't feel disruptive or confusing, and the player can focus purely on solving the puzzles themselves. Gradually unlocking further levels and modes gives the game a structure that keeps giving the player something new to discover without having to revisit already completed content.

Puzzle Link isn't among the best-known titles in the Game Boy Color catalogue, but for genre fans it represents solid, honestly executed work offering more content than the average single-purpose puzzle released in the same period. It's exactly this combination of several game modes in one package that sets the game apart from competitors, which usually focus on just a single puzzle principle. Today it's more of a curiosity for collectors and fans of handheld puzzle games than a title that defined the genre, yet it still deserves attention as a showcase of the variety of the era's output on this platform and of the honest craftsmanship typical of SETA's puzzle titles across multiple console generations.